Treasure Valley's Best Blog

Gift the Family Cabin and Avoid the Pitfalls

mwight — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:03:47 +0000

I recently came across this article by Patricia Annino. She does a good job of covering the pros and cons of gifting a family vacation home or other property. She also gives some good advice about avoiding family stress and conflict during the process and after the endowment.

We have discussed these concepts many times before but it is always nice to present another voice on the subject. It is important to remember that these ideas and the wisdom they include accomplish nothing without action on your part.

The issues surrounding gifting and creating a trust are worth mulling over, but just as important is the planning that goes into creating the trust and the correct timing to maximize its value. You can make good use of this timing given the present generous state of our estate and gift tax law, along with the currently depressed asset values.

Again, whether it’s thinking about the funds to put in the trust or the future of the inheritor, there’s no time like the present! Call us today and schedule a consultation and estate plan analysis. Remember, good planning is no accident.

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Retiring Boomers Leave Skills Gap

mwight — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 15:36:01 +0000

There is an interesting article in the Idaho Statesman today about the future of employment in America. With the first wave of Baby Boomers retiring we are starting to see a future of a number of careers with nobody to take over the jobs. Idaho Power is just one company facing a brain-drain. In the article found here, Bill Roberts reports:

At Idaho Power, more than 25 percent of the company’s 2,000 employees are people who could retire today. Within a decade, that is expected to grow to 60 percent.

“It’s something we’ve been seeing for quite some time, and we’ve been spending a fair amount of time on this issue,” said Darrel Anderson, the utility’s president and chief financial officer.

One of the solutions companies are considering over the next decade is re-hiring retired experts as consultants. This could become a significant income source for many of our elder Americans. Of course one must be careful when adding income especially if it could benefits such as those provided by the VA, Medicare or Medicaid, another good reason to have an estate plan in place.

At Idaho Estate Planning, we can help you find the resources you need to put your estate plan together. We have the experience and expertise to help you maintain your options and protect yourself as well as your loved ones now and into the future. Remember, good planning is no accident.

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Long Term Care – Medicare or Medicaid?

mwight — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:53:26 +0000

A study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that “people who reach age 65 will likely have a 40 percent chance of entering a nursing home. About 10 percent of the people who enter a nursing home will stay there five years or more. This year, about nine million men and women over the age of 65 will need eldercare. By 2020, 12 million older Americans will need eldercare. Most will be cared for at home; with family and friends as the sole caregivers for 70 percent of the elderly”

A new population of seniors and those nearing the senior status are looking for some type of financial means to pay for long term care (eldercare) in case of failing health. Many have taken care of family members who had no means to pay for their care or have seen their parents entire retirement savings wiped out because of medical and nursing home costs.

Does the government Medicare program pay for eldercare costs? A statement on the Medicare.gov website clarifies what Medicare will pay for.

“Generally, Medicare doesn’t pay for long-term care. Medicare pays only for medically necessary skilled nursing facility or home health care. However, you must meet certain conditions for Medicare to pay for these types of care. Most long-term care is to assist people with support services such as activities of daily living like dressing, bathing, and using the bathroom. Medicare doesn’t pay for this type of care called “custodial care”. Custodial care (non-skilled care) is care that helps you with activities of daily living. It may also include care that most people do for themselves, for example, diabetes monitoring. Some Medicare Advantage Plans (formerly Medicare + Choice) may offer limited skilled nursing facility and home care (skilled care) coverage if the care is medically necessary.”

How does Medicaid cover long term care costs? Fortunately, there is a government program that will help pay for long term care costs – Medicaid. Unfortunately, this program is unfairly discriminatory and will only pay for care for individuals who have less than $1,500 to $2,000 in assets (and in about 22 states, the program will only cover individuals who fall below a certain income threshold). All other individuals wanting help from Medicaid must impoverish themselves paying for their own eldercare services first, before Medicaid will help them.

Planning for the final years of life and dovetailing government programs, care provider systems and funding sources can be invaluable yet complicated. This area of planning can be one of the most challenging endeavors undertaken by anyone attempting to help seniors in this final phase of life.

At Idaho Estate Planning, we have the skill and resources to help you put your long-term care plan together, including preparing for the possibility of Medicaid. We have the experience and expertise to help you maintain your options and protect yourself as well as your loved ones now and into the future. Remember, good planning is no accident!

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Interview With Wealthonomics.Org

mwight — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:22:22 +0000

I recently did an interview with the folks at Wealthonomics.org which they have posted as a podcast titled Estate Planning 101. You can find the audio file at http://wealthonomics.org/estate-planning-101/. Remember, good planning is no accident.

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Holographic Performers and Estate Planning

mwight — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:08:27 +0000

The name Tupac Shakur is very famous in the world of Rap Music. Tupac was on stage the other night performing at a music festival. “So what” you may ask? The interesting thing about the performance is that Tupac died in 1996. So who was on stage? The performer was none other than a holographic image of Tupak. As you might imagine there has been no shortage of opinions on the whole situation, some love it, some hate it, some are a little “creeped out” by the whole idea. The reason we’re talking about it here is the impact it may have on estate planning.

You see, Tupak’s mother, the executor of his estate, approved the use of his image and a large donation was made to his foundation for the “performance”. The question for you may not have to do with whether your heirs will use a 3D image of you in a concert but more realistically how will they treat your legacy? If you don’t leave specific instructions as to how you want things handled then your family, or whomever you leave in charge, will decide for you. There is an article touching on this new frontier in estate management on Forbes Magazine’s website. You can read the article here.

The authors share a sentiment we have iterated many times before, “This is something to think about for many of us. Even when you’re not famous, and don’t have to worry about whether or not your estate will allow a hologram of you to perform, you have a name and reputation that will live on after you’re gone. For business owners, there is the added concern of your reputation being properly managed through your business after you pass away. Who do you want to control your legacy after you pass? Do you want that person to treat your heirs honorably, as you would have liked? Do you want your business to be managed in a way that would make you proud?” If you have concerns about your legacy and reputation we suggest you do something about it. Remember, good planning is no accident.

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Worldwide Dementia Cases Increase at Alarming Rate

mwight — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 15:13:24 +0000

We’ve discussed before the ever climbing rate of seniors who suffer from dementia. The World Health Organization projects cases worldwide could reach 115 Million by 2050. According to the WHO about 35.6 million people were living with dementia in 2010. It is expected to double to 65.7 million by 2030. I recently read an article on The Globe And Mail that you should check out. The article can be found here.

Fundamentally, it’s important to understand that Alzheimer’s is not the same as other diseases. Dealing with dementia requires a lot of attention from all involved. Through it all, competent counsel will be necessary to properly assess the needs and possibilities, as well as to ensure that everything is in place when needed most. At Idaho Estate Planning we have the experience and expertise to help you maintain your options and protect yourself as well as your loved ones now and into the future. We have a network of resources throughout the Treasure Valley ready to help us meet your needs. Remember, good planning is no accident!

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Pressure Is On the VA

mwight — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:02:23 +0000

I came across this article on the Washington Post web page. Steve Vogel, the author is reporting on the potential for errors and delays in regards to disability claims at the Veterans Administration. With a backlog of more than 900,000 cases and almost 600,000 of them pending for more than 125 days you can see why some folks are a little concerned. The Pension Benefit is a small part of this number with over 75,000 cases waiting with 36,000 over 125 days. If you are a veteran or know a veteran they I’m sure you identify with their frustration. We are a witness of the difficulties faced by our veterans in qualifying for the VA Pension Benefit, sometimes referred to as Aid & Attendance.

The secret for receiving a successful award from the VA is not in filling out the form but in knowing what documents and evidence must be submitted with the application. Knowing the secrets for a successful award – with the special case of long term care recipients – is 95% of the battle. A knowledgeable, accredited consultant can provide information to shorten the VA’s decision window of 6 to 12 months to possibly 3 or 4 months.

At Idaho Estate Planning we understand how to maximize the benefit or avoid a denial. We can also provide guidance for meeting the asset test. We provide the best strategies for reallocating assets through trusts or income conversions to allow for the best possible accommodation of assets for beneficiaries thus avoiding or reducing taxes, family disputes and Medicaid penalties.

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Long-Term Care Insurance Costs Rising

mwight — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 14:34:17 +0000

Now that Tax Day has come and gone you might want to turn your attention to the cost of your long-term care policy. The website Insurance News Net recently published a story about the rising costs in Florida for policies offered by the John Hancock Company. You can find the article here.

If you don’t have a long-term care policy in place or have seen a drastic rise in premium costs it may be time for some shopping around. Seek out trusted professionals and do your homework. While you’re at it we recommend putting a plan together. If you are a Veteran that served during a time of war you should also look into available benefits. At Idaho Estate Planning, we have the skill and resources to help you put your long-term care plan together, including preparing for the possibility of Medicaid as well as helping veterans apply for VA Aid and Attendance. We have the experience and expertise to help you maintain your options and protect yourself as well as your loved ones now and into the future. Remember, good planning is no accident!

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Windows XP and Office 2003 Swan Song

mwight — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:52:00 +0000

If you haven’t already heard from the myriad of news sources on the web Windows XP and Office 2003 will no longer be supported by Microsoft after April 8^th, 2014. Now that might seem like a long way down the road to some but it never ceases to amaze me how quickly time passes the older I get. I came across two interesting articles on this subject that I would like to pass on to you. One is by blogger Colin Neagle with Networkworld.com and the other is by Stella Chernyak a member of the Windows Team. Both articles are worth your time to review and if you have a computer or 5 or 10 at home or in your business that runs either of these programs you may want to put together an upgrade plan. If like many professionals you have critical and or specialized software that only runs on XP you will also need to consider upgrading that program. This quote from Mr. Neagle’s article really drives the point home;

“Jason Miller, manager of research and development at VMware, says the introduction of Windows XP “was the hey-day of buying computers,” with markets having become familiar with Windows 95 or 98 and manufacturers like Dell releasing affordable options. With such an influx of new users, it comes as no surprise that Windows XP remains one of the most common operating systems despite the introduction of two entirely new versions in the decade since it hit shelves. In fact, March 2012 statistics from NetMarketShare.com show XP in the lead for operating system market share, at 43.09%.”

No matter your needs, it is always a good idea to put together and follow a plan of action. Remember, good planning is no accident.

The articles:

Upgrade Today: Two-Year Countdown to End of Support for Windows XP and Office 2003, Stella Chernyak

End of Windows XP Support Era Signals Beginning of Security Nightmare, Colin Neagle

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Charities Release Social Security Numbers

mwight — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 14:36:38 +0000

Americans are a very charitable people. We like to give and we like to donate to groups that do good work. Apparently not all charities are managed equally. I recently found an article on the Advisor One web page that reminded me how vigilant we all must be with our personal information. In the article Donors Beware: Social Security Numbers Exposed by Charities the group Identity Finder reveals “that nearly a fifth of nonprofits between 2001 and 2006 published the social security numbers of donors, scholarship recipients, tax preparers, directors, employees and trustees on their tax returns, which are open to the public.”

I would suggest reading the article and then contacting your favorite charities to ensure they are not publishing your sensitive information. In the future we would all be better served to remember how critical it is to protect our identities, we all should plan now to protect ourselves in the future. Remember, good planning is no accident.

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